Why state governments must adhere to NERDC policy for primary, secondary education – NPA

Governors of the 36 states in Nigeria have been urged to ensure that the Ministry of Education in their states adhere to the National Education Research and Development Council (NERDC) policy for primary and secondary schools.

The advice was given by the Nigerian Publishers Association (NPA), in a statement issued by the President/Chairman-in-Council of NPA, Dr. Uchenna Cyril Anioke..

According to the statement, yearly review of books and academic materials for primary and secondary schools contravenes NERDC policy, which pegged review of primary school books at every six years and three years for secondary schools.

Anioke, however, called on Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State to reconsider purported incessant review of books and academic materials for primary and secondary schools in the state, because of its adverse effects on the publihers, parents and guardians.

The Anambra State Government, the statement read in part, had in 2021 carried out a review of primary school books, which is still running, adding that in 2022 also, the state carried out a review exercise of Junior and Senior smSecondary Schools.

The government was also reported to have issued a fresh notice on February 1, 2023 entitled: ‘Guidelines to Publishers and Authors on the 2023-2024 Primary and Secondary Education Book Review Exercise’.”

Anioke said: Our appeal to Governor Charles Soludo is to reconsider this yearly review, which comes with huge financial cost on parents and publishers. Despite not getting the needed support from the federal and state governments, members of our association toil so hard to shoulder the financial cost of the review of these academic materials.

Additionally, with the increasing cost of production of these books, our members submit at least six copies of each title at no cost to the authorities each time a review is to take place. This will amount to a huge amount of money for someone submitting 100 titles for instance, in an environment where our members enjoy zero incentive”

The NPA stated further that allowing review exercise for three years for secondary schools and six years for primary schools as recommended by NERDC would also save parents the cost of having to purchase books for their children and wards yearly, especially those with more than one child in school.